"Holy Hell" Review

http://variety.com/2016/film/reviews/holy-hell-review-cult-sundance-1201784316/

The Variety review that I read is much more analytical about what went on in the film. While I tried to restrain myself from including my personal opinion of Michel, the author of the article doesn't have to do that necessarily. They are also able to include more analysis of Allen as the director and not just what he said in his voice over narration. What made this review stand out the most was the comparisons to horror films that the author of the review made. I thought that Holy Hell was a very disturbing documentary and it seemed fit that it be compared to horror films.

"Holy Hell"

I watched the documentary "Holy Hell" directed by Will Allen. Will Allen was a member of a cult named the Buddhafield for about 20 years of his life. While he was in the group he filmed their experiences.

1. The scene that got to me the most was the one about the "Knowing" ceremony that took place after 1989. The leader of the cult, Michel, set himself up on a makeshift throne in the middle of the forest. The members came to him one by one to ask him if they were ready for receive the "Knowing." He promised those that were ready a personal encounter with God. Those that weren't ready were simply sent away. The ones who he did perform the ceremony with were transformed. The way he was able to manipulate these people was unbelievable. That was when I fully understood that the Buddhafield was a cult. I also got past the point of considering Michel to be a joke to despising him. It was extremely disturbing to see the power he had over the group.

2. I was surprised by how long it took members of the group to realize that Michel was orchestrating all of this for his ego and personal benefit. Michel seemed like he had good intentions while the group was in West Hollywood but, he started to lose it even more when the group received attention from the Cult Awareness Network. I figured that many of the members would leave the group after Michel left them for months to find a new place for them to live. I couldn't believe that once he decided their new place was going to be Austin, Texas so many of them just dropped everything to follow him. Andres, as he was called then, was forcing people to basically be his servants and they even built him his own theatre for his ballets. The members of the group that were interviewed in the film all described in one way or another that they knew this group wasn't what they had signed up. Despite that, many of them stayed with Andres until they fell apart around 2006.

3. I am still questioning how Michel/Andres was able to manipulate them without using drugs. The members believed they were having divine experiences that they could only have if they were with Michel. To me it was obvious that Michel was a fraud but he had such an intense way of controlling the members. The people that were interviewed all noted that they weren't drinking alcohol or using hallucinogens.

I was left uneasy by how Michel forced women in the group to get abortions if they got pregnant. Despite that he was discouraging the members' sexuality, from the very early years Michel was practically raping several of the men during weekly therapy sessions that they paid $50 a week for. A lot of the members came in to the Buddhafield because they were trying to overcome things that they lived through. Under Michel's guidance they suffered even more psychological trauma.

Edit:

• Is there any legal action that can be taken against cult leaders? 
• Were there any members that didn't have any friends or family willing to help them after they left the Buddhafield? How successful were they at functioning without the group?
• Allen included original footage that he shot while he was in the Buddhafield. Did Michel or other members (not the ones interviewed in the film) get a say in what was shown?
• I would like to find out more about the Cult Awareness Network. If Michel was so sure that they weren't a cult, why was he so fearful of them?
• How were there members that decided to stay after all the allegations about Michel were confirmed? There were multiple men that came forward about Michel forcing them to have sex and his pornography films were found. How were they able to ignore that enough to stay?

The Good Fight

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I began today with a heavy heart. This morning, Attorney General Sessions made the official announcement that the DACA program has been rescinded. I was at work and knew that this was coming but, I still felt like I had been sucker punched. When I gathered my thoughts they all came back to one thing - my privilege.

My life will not be turned upside-down by this decision. I am privileged to be a U.S. Citizen. I started my first job the summer after I turned 16. I took Drivers Ed and got my license that same year. I applied for colleges last Fall without a problem. I finished my first week of college with my only concern being how many chapters I had to read for my speech class. These are all privileges that I take for granted.

I cannot allow myself the privilege of being silent. My friends, colleagues, and mentors are DREAMers. They are students, workers, parents, spouses, and leaders. Over everything and anything else, they are people. 

I have gotten to know these people through my volunteer work with immigrant advocacy works. I have seen how intense the vetting process is during the past two years I've worked at an immigration law firm. My workload this next month will mostly consist of preparing renewal application for those that will be allowed to apply before October 5th. I will have to start closing out the files for the clients who will be without status as soon as March 6, 2018. I will attend protests and community meetings. I will contact my elected officials and continue to be an ally. 

My community will not be silenced and neither will I.